Soft
by Miss Pretty Socks
Summary: [HanaXItachi] The bare branches of the maple tree shook with a passing wind. The very few remaining leaves had been blown away: they were no longer holding on, they were no longer strong. They had…gone soft.


**Soft.**

This morning was cold. And with this cold, a thick white fog had come to settle over Konoha. It was during this morning that Inuzuka Hana could not sleep. The frigid air drifted its way into the tiny cracks of her windows while her sensitive nose twitched from the irritable coldness. But she loved this; the bitter cold that chilled her bones, that had the ability to keep so many people locked up in their houses. She loved this cold because it was like walking back in time, into a memory that brought a smile to her face but a dull pain to her heart. It was always like this when she thought of him; as if he would be thinking of her at the same time, and somehow, it caused this weather that they could only associate with each other. Or at least that's what she had always hoped. But since then Hana had grown up, and she had come to terms with the fact that he had left Konoha and he was never coming back to make amends. Not that the shinobi would be very accepting anyways.

But it was not being cold that had woken Hana up with a start. It was the fact that this cold was here in the first place; this familiar and comforting cold. She wasn't thinking of him; she hadn't done that in a while. And all of that time where her thoughts of him were absent, that bitter air was absent too. What was this? As she sat straight up in her bed she breathed in deeply trying to smell for him. Could he really be here? Hana got up and opened her window, breathing in once more. It was faint, miles away, but it was there. His scent would never leave her senses, no matter how hard she tried to forget him and how he had left. He had killed his entire clan and then thanked her for it. How could she forget?

Her Haimaru Sankyodai were still half asleep. One opened his eyes and looked up at Hana in what could only be described as questioningly. Hana kneeled down and stroked the dog's fur, telling him to stay here with the others as she wished to go for a walk by herself this morning to 'clear her mind'. The gray dog yawned widely and could smell the anxiousness coming from his master. But he ignored it. He laid his head over his paws once more and drifted into a light sleep.

The wooden floorboards were harsh against Hana's bare feet. They only seemed to creak and moan whenever she wanted to sneak out of the house unnoticed. She only needed to pass Kiba's room before she would make it to the stairs, and from then on she only needed to slip out the front door.

* * *

Kiba woke up shivering. His blanket discarded on the floor from a night of tossing and turning in hopes of finding a suitable sleeping position. He reached for his blanket, and then stretched his freezing limbs. His sister was up; he could hear her quiet and careful footsteps as she passed his door. It was an odd thing to find her awake so early. But he ignored it; it didn't really matter to him anyways. He was too tired from an almost sleepless night to go bother his sister with questions of why she was up at such a time. Kiba laid back down, an arm over a sleeping Akamaru, and let his tired eyes close to allow for a dreamless sleep to take over him.

* * *

Hana pulled on her coat and opened the front door of her house; careful not to alert any of her family she was going out at such an ungodly hour in this weather. She walked slowly down the streets of Konoha towards the gates, every so often sniffing the air in hopes of catching his scent. It was not there. Not even the faintest trace of him. Maybe her senses were fooled this morning. Maybe he wasn't coming here; maybe he wasn't even close to begin with. But then again, maybe he was just masking it somehow as he got closer to the village. There it was; that false hope she had believed was no longer a part of her had just shown itself once more. It both angered and saddened her how she longed for him still, and now it had become so strong that she was starting to make things up. Like how this cold always followed him or how she had believed without a doubt she could smell him when she woke up. She wished she could blame it on being crazy or needing to go out and be social more often. But she couldn't do that, because the fact of the matter was; she was still in love with him. But one can only imagine; you do have to be a little crazy to love with _the_ Uchiha Itachi.

As Hana walked the vacuous streets that led to the gates, she couldn't help but think of the last time she saw him and what he had said to her. That moment would never escape her memory. It haunted her, and in a way, she wanted it to.

* * *

"_W-why would you do such a thing to your family? Didn't you love them?" Hana could not comprehend what would possess someone to do such a thing. To kill an enemy was one thing, but to kill your entire clan was completely incomprehensible, especially to a member of a clan as loyal as the Inuzuka. _

_Itachi stared at the girl in front of him. She really was beautiful, the prettiest of the entire Inuzuka clan, but she looked liked she was about to break down. And crying never suited that pretty face of hers. He wouldn't stand to see it._

"_I wanted to see how strong I was." A simple answer. _

"_No." She spoke sharply and reflexively after his vague excuse. Tears threatened to penetrate. Her voice then became dangerous and low; full of skepticism. "If you wanted to see how strong you were you would have continued to kill more people, not just your clan. Now tell me." She was standing in front of him; her tears were of anger. _

_Itachi was silent for a moment. How he loved when she got angry. Her eyes would flash and her mouth would curl up in a vicious snarl. She became more defiant and confident, and Itachi loved that most about her. It showed him this beautiful side of her that wanted nothing more than to kill and rebel. Yes, anger suited her best. A slow, addicting smirk played upon his lips. _

"_I did it all for you, Hana." Her face was stoic, but her body shivered. From the cold or the comment, he would never know._

_But he wanted her to get angry; he wanted only to see her wish death upon him just one last time before he left. It soon became clear to him that she would not get angry, and he was saddened by this revelation. So instead Itachi stepped forward, took her face in his hands, and kissed her gently on the lips. Before he pulled away he breathed "Thank you." upon her lips._

_It was unlike him to be gentle, to be soft. Where had this come from? Hana didn't have time to wonder any further on the matter._

"_Goodbye Hana." His voice was banausic, as if he really didn't care. A contradiction to what he had just done. But then again, maybe he really didn't care. He took off into the forest, disappearing swiftly into the fog that had at sometime appeared. That was more his style._

_He had left with the last word, something he never did simply because she would not allow for it. But now she was speechless, rooted to the spot with this newfound guilt and wariness he had bestowed upon her. And even as she heard the shouts of the shinobi that were no doubt trying to track the Uchiha, Hana could simply not budge. All she could do was…cry. She dropped to her knees. He had done nothing but say a few words to her and she was down; crying, sobbing, as if he had cast a powerful genjutsu on her. _

_Hana couldn't move and she couldn't stop thinking. 'He killed his entire clan…just for me? Why? What does this mean? Am I responsible for the deaths of all those people?' _

'_Was it really…all my fault?'

* * *

_

Hana had made it to the gates unsurprisingly passing no brave soul who had bothered to venture outside this morning. There was only one guard at the gate; no doubt a weak chunin. 'No wonder we were attacked so easily.' Hana thought passively. In any case, she could beat him with her bare hands, but she couldn't think of a situation in which that would be necessary. She took to stand under a bare maple tree a few meters from the entrance. She would wait for him, but only for today. For ten minutes Hana stood completely still; eyes strained down the path that lead out of Konoha, ears on alert for any sound, and her nose focused solely on sniffing him out.

A few moments later her nose alerted her. There was no doubt about it; it was the Uchiha. Her acute smell went right through the mask he had used to cover up any trace of him. Covering his charka wouldn't be enough in Konoha, he knew that, but he had underestimated the Inuzuka clan. Or at least, he had underestimated her. Only she knew his scent, and she was pretty sure he knew that too. 'How dare he underestimate me! He's been gone four years; he has no idea what I'm capable of! What did he think I would do when he left, cry myself to sleep every night and stay a lousy genin? Hah! He must think I've gone soft. Well I'll sh-.'

"Hm?" Hana alerted herself. Two figures were approaching the gate. It was Uchiha alright, but who was this other guy? Hana stood in her spot under the leafless maple. She watched as he and his companion kept their heads down as they entered the gate.

"Um, excuse me…" 'That stupid chunin.' Hana thought.

The Uchiha barely turned in the direction of the ignorant man and the very next second the chunin was passed out on the ground.

Hana took the smallest of steps out from under the tree. Not that she was hidden before or anything, only to make her presence known so he would have to do more than ignore her.

Itachi had stopped walking at his leisurely pace and glanced over at the young woman he had known years ago.

"What are you doing here?" Her voice was calm but certainly nowhere near comforting.

Itachi's companion, Kisame, suddenly turned at the woman's voice. He had figured the Uchiha was just going to use his sharingan on this person too. But he had not, only looked at the woman for about ten seconds and then continued on.

"Don't do anything stupid." Hana said gently for only Itachi to hear as he sauntered past her. He was a criminal who had killed his entire clan but he was… a gentleman. Hana knew that he would not engage in battle unless someone stood in the way of his mission. Whatever that mission may be. And at this moment Hana really didn't care what his mission was, she couldn't even be certain this was actually happening.

Kisame once again walked alongside his partner into the streets of Konoha. After the pair was out of earshot of the woman, or so he had thought, Kisame turned to his companion.

"What the hell was that Uchiha? Just because she's a woman you're going to let her go? She's from this village; she knows who you are. For God's sake! Won't she report us?" Kisame didn't really care if the enemy knew they were there, they would find out eventually anyways. He was just more excited about pointing out the Uchiha's mistake.

"She's not going to tell." Itachi said evenly. Kisame glared at his partner, and the two continued on.

Hana scoffed at the comment. Of course she was going to tell the Hokage. They were the enemies; it was her duty as a Leaf Shinobi to do so. But then why had she stood around so long here? Why had she not immediately gone to the Hokage? Why was she so…indecisive? Why?! This should be an easy decision. Hana looked up.

She knew why.

The bare branches of the maple tree shook with a passing wind. The very few remaining leaves had been blown away; they were no longer holding on, they were no longer strong. They had…gone soft.

* * *

On her walk back home Hana kept her head down in shame. The sun was rising slowly and the fog had begun to disperse. Even the bitter cold she claimed to love so much was fading away with the promise of a warmer day. But Hana didn't really pay attention to such a trivial matter as the weather. There were more pressing issues at hand. Such as the fact she was betraying her village and everything she had always fought to protect. And for what?! A boy she had loved years ago who now had only merely glanced at her. She was pathetic.

* * *

Kiba watched with mild interest as his sister walked through the front door.

"Where have you been Hana? It's not like you to be up before your brother." Tsume commented.

Hana gave no answer, nor did she give any indication she had heard the question at all. She just numbly climbed the stairs towards her room. No doubt to go back to sleep.

The blankets looked so warm, so comforting…so inviting. She couldn't resist the sweet temptation of a peaceful rest. Hana kicked off her shoes, discarded her coat, and eased her way onto her bed. She knew she should go tell the Hokage about Uchiha Itachi and his partner, but sleep just sounded like a more pleasant option. She rested her head on the cool sheets and allowed for her heavy eyes to shut. It didn't even seem real to her that she would see him in such a place as the streets of Konoha. It's like he didn't belong there and all he was was a pathetic daydream of a young woman who couldn't help but dwell on the past. 'Maybe it wasn't real. Maybe…I had made it all up…"

* * *

"_Itachi, please tell me what's wrong." Hana said, her head resting against his shoulder. She sounded uncertain; she was never any good at comforting people. Especially Itachi when he was in one of his moods._

_In response Itachi only folded his hands and held then against his lips; glaring at the desk in front of him. Hana sighed and lifted her head from his shoulder. The two sat in silence for a long time, a really long time. And although Hana never knew how to comfort Itachi, she knew how not to. And that was to talk, so she didn't. She stayed silent._

_It was raining today, a steady rain accompanied by a gray sky. Itachi was thinking today._

"_Hana…" His voice was quiet, so very quiet that at first Hana had thought he was only thinking aloud rather than addressing her. But she responded anyways._

"_Hm?" Well, sort of responded._

"_I need you to know that… I would never let anyone hurt you." He was still staring intently at the desk. Still, she remained silent, only turning her head slightly to look at his face. He looked troubled today, far more troubled than she had ever seen him._

_He turned to face her, his eyes held a wild look._

"_I would kill for you." Hana could do nothing but stare at the boy in front of her. It was strange, but a flattering comment nonetheless. _

_She brought her left hand slowly up his arm, over his shoulder, and around his neck. Her fingers played delicately with his hair. Itachi held her gaze and in a swift and unpredictable motion, he lowered his head and kissed her. Coincidently, another thing he never did, simply because she would not allow it. She liked to be dominating, well; at least she liked to be the first to act. It was rather difficult to maintain that dominance when you were dealing with Uchiha Itachi._

_He loved kissing her, just loved being with her. She made him feel wanted, like he had something to fight for, to get stronger for. He would always protect her._

_Itachi pulled away and brought his lips to her neck. _

"_Itachi…" Hana sighed. Itachi lightly nipped at her skin._

"_I love you Hana." His voice was muffled against her skin. She was too shocked to move, too pleasured by his advances that she couldn't respond. He led her to his bed and gently laid her down…

* * *

_

**Mid-Afternoon.**

Kiba had finished training with his team and was on his way home for lunch. He would have to bear with his sister's cooking today as their mother had taken a mission a couple hours ago. Kiba opened the door to his house.

"Ah! Nee-chan! Make me some lunch!" Kiba's booming voice echoed throughout the house. 'Oh…right. Hana was acting weird this morning so she's probably still sleeping upstairs.' Kiba took off his shoes and coat and began to walk the stairs with Akamaru to wake up his lazy sister.

A rap of knuckles was heard against the front door. 'Heh, probably Shino. He probably wants a rematch since I kicked his ass in taijutsu training this morning.' Kiba redirected himself and headed towards the door. Another set of knocking was heard and Kiba flung it open, expecting Shino but instead revealing another man with dark hair and eyes. Kiba had seen him around the village before, carrying stacks of books and papers with some other guy for the Hokage.

"Hey! Your sister around?" The man asked. He looked jumpy, sort of nervous.

"Uh…yes, she is. Who are you?" Kiba asked with suspicion. She may not have made him lunch, but he didn't want a creepy murderer stalking his sister.

"Kamizuki Izumo. I'm one of your sister's friends." The man replied.

"Hmm…" Kiba contemplated letting the man inside.

"It's all right Kiba. You can let him in." Hana's voice was heard. Both Kiba and Izumo looked up to see Hana standing at the top of the stairs, already dressed and ready to go. Her dogs nowhere to be seen.

Kiba let Izumo into the house and with one last fleeting glance, left to rummage through the kitchen. Hana walked down the stairs to meet Izumo.

"What is it?" She asked quietly.

"The Hokage had requested all chunin and jonin attend an emergency meeting." Izumo replied. Hana nodded. "When I realized you weren't there and you weren't away on a mission I came to tell you the news." He seemed to get really nervous.

Hana was silent, waiting for him to continue.

Izumo just couldn't find the courage to look her in the eye. He had no idea how she would react to find that the man she had loved years ago had shown his face in this village again. No one knew how she would react, and that's why the Hokage had sent him to deliver the news. He was a friend. He could be a shoulder for her to cry on or if she decided to get violent, she might stop from killing the bearer of bad news if he was a friend.

"Uchiha Itachi is back."

'This morning… it wasn't a dream.' Hana shook her head. To Izumo she looked confused. But she was more angry than anything. She stared intently at the door behind Izumo and with a mumbled "Excuse me." she escaped outside.

'I can't let him get away. Not without knowing the truth.'

* * *

One hour had passed before Hana had finally found them, walking down a small dirt road as if they were there everyday. She knew she had been sensed, she wasn't going to hide herself anyways. She was here to find out the truth and she would find it. No matter what.

Hana was a fair distance away from the two Akatsuki members so she yelled out his name.

"Uchiha!" His walking ceased but he motioned Kisame to continue with a wave of his hand. Kisame glanced suspiciously at his partner but continued on nonetheless. Itachi leisurely turned around.

Hana walked slowly to meet him, she was feeling confident. She would give him a piece of her mind. Scream and yell at him for leaving her! For making her feel guilty!

The sun was setting now, the sky full of orange clouds. Hana subconsciously wondered where the day had gone. When she was sleeping, what had he done? Did he kill anybody? Complete his mission? As this thought entertained her mind she began to feel a little self-conscious. By the time she reached him she had forgotten what exactly she had come to say.

She stood in front of him now, faced him with no fear in her stance. For it wasn't fear she was feeling, it was more of an unworthiness. She felt so belittled just by his presence. And this feeling confused her most of all. Hana did not speak, only looked at the man before her and tried to figure out why he looked so different.

"What is it?" He spoke. His voice was neither cold nor comforting, but an even tone.

"I need to know." Her hands were shaking so she quickly balled them into fists. "I need to know why you killed them."

Itachi made no response. He watched as she twitched slightly in anger at his resistance to speak.

"What the hell did I have to do with it?!" He smirked, how he missed her. Two steps and he was almost touching her.

"Now that's what I like to see." Itachi reached out a hand to touch her face. She backed away and glared at him. She wasn't here for a reunion, she was here for answers. That phrase was embedded in her memory; she had to keep reminding herself of it as she searched for him.

"Aren't you going to turn me in?" He asked. The bitterness in his voice was now apparent after being rejected.

Hana remained silent, as did Itachi. They stayed that way for a long time, so long that Kisame was almost out of sight down the long dirt road. Hana was being stubborn, as usual, and the only way Itachi would ever be able to get her away from him was to tell her or kill her.

"They wanted me to stop seeing you, your clan wasn't wealthy enough." Itachi broke the silence. "When I refused, they threatened to take your life so the clan name would not be disgraced."

Hana's head shot up and she stared, bewildered, at Itachi.

"What…" The word came out so lightly that it seemed to float.

"Well now, aren't you going to turn me in?" He asked once more.

Hana reached for one of his hands. It was so cold; she shivered at the touch of his skin.

"No." She replied with a light tilt of her head.

"You've become soft, Hana." He spoke, his hand reaching to touch her cheek. She allowed him to do so.

Hana leaned up and kissed his lips, breathing "Only for you." upon them before pulling away. And then she turned around and slowly headed back towards the heart of Konoha. Now he would stand there, and he would be the one watch her leave him.

This time, she had left with the last word.

Author's Note: Well..that was it:D My first fanfic. Woot! Itachi and Hana were OOC I know. : I tried though. But anyways...just show me some love and review! Oh and throughout this whole writing process I could never have made it through without my inspiration: Haha, I love that...


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